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www.actionforindia.org
Mission
To empower social innovators and
entrepreneurs to break barriers to scale, by
developing a strong and supportive
ecosystem.
Vision
A transformed India, powered by visionary,
innovative and agile entrepreneurs, driving
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Pyramid.
ACTION
FOR INDIA
Values
Trust
Excellence
Sustainability
Collaboration
Diversity
Inclusion
Goals
Facilitate the setting up of 20 Social
Entrepreneurship and Innovation hubs across
India impacting 20 million people, as a part of
‘Vision 2020’
Recognize and empower 100 social
entrepreneurs across 6 key sectors, every
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investments
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every year to support Social Entrepreneurship
across the country
Launch an AFI Accelerator for early stage
social enterprises
01
A Note
From The Founder
Dear Friends,
Let me begin with a parable…
7KHUHZHUHRQFHWZR\RXQJSRODUEHDUWZLQVVLWWLQJRQVHSDUDWHLFHȵRHVLQWKHPLGGOHRIWKHRFHDQZRQGHU
ing what to do next. They had never been into the ocean alone.
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how cold it was. She knew that it wouldn’t be easy to survive. The brother sat back watching his sister and
wondered what she was doing. Surely a seal would come within reach soon.
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was now cold and wet, as well as hungry.
The brother laughed at his sister’s foolishness.
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time and was encouraged by the improvement in her hunting abilities.
The brother yelled out to her, “You’re crazy! Why don’t you just wait, eventually a seal will come to you.”
She humphed and dived in again. This time, she was successful and emerged with a young seal which she
consumed enthusiastically. This is what “success” tasted like.
ΖQZHZHUHPXFKOLNHWKHSRODUEHDUVLWWLQJRQWKHLFHȵRHDQGORRNLQJRXWDWWKHSOHWKRUDRIVRFLDOSURE
lems that India is facing and a bunch of people working hard at resolving them. From that vantage point, we
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QHHGHGVXSSRUWȴQDQFLDOPRUDODQGRUJDQLVDWLRQDO:HFRXOGKDYHFKRVHQWRVWD\SXWPXFKOLNHWKHEURWKHU
WZLQ%XWZHGLYHGULJKWLQWRWKHFROGZDWHUV0DQ\WLPHVZHFDPHEDFNHPSW\KDQGHGDQGGLVLOOXVLRQHG%XW
right from the beginning, as we have supported and seen some of smallest ideas turn into huge social move
ments, we know the dive was a good call to take.
AFI, as I have always said, has been inspired, guided and blessed by Sam Pitroda. During a meeting with a
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room?” and that was the impetus for AFI. We, as an organisation have grown over the years bringing more
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several government organisations. At AFI, we understand that technology, investment and partnerships are
the three key elements which can help a social entrepreneur grow.
Through this journey, there have been a few milestones which I want to highlight. In 2013, AFI established its
chapter in Silicon Valley, the birthplace of innovation this century. In 2014, AFI launched the Silicon Valley
&KDOOHQJH7UHNIRUWKHWRSȴYHPRVWGHVHUYLQJVRFLDOLQQRYDWRUVWRYLVLWDQGPHHWȴUVWKDQGLQQRYDWRUVDQG
philanthropists in the USA. And we are releasing this impact report today on the launch of the 6th Annual AFI
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WKHVHFWRUVRIDJULFXOWXUHHGXFDWLRQHQHUJ\KHDOWKFDUHȴQDQFLDOLQFOXVLRQDQGOLYHOLKRRGV
As we look at our journey over the next 5 years, I am delighted to share with you that AFI is leading the way
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Along the course of this amazing journey we have received tremendous support from several distinguished
~
leaders, too many to be named here, but the ones who have given us whole hearted help and continue to
do so include Desh Deshpande, Raju Reddy, Nishith Desai, Shiv Khemka and Dilip Modi.
:LWKȴYHHVWDEOLVKHGKXEV$)ΖKDVVHWDEROGQHZJRDOWRLPSDFWXSWRPLOOLRQSHRSOHLQΖQGLDE\WKH\HDU
2020 by setting up multiple hubs across the country. I call it Vision 2020!
AFI, much like the polar bear sister, took a deep dive years ago and bet on the budding social innovators and
the new solutions they brought to the world. The stories in this report are a testimony that we bet at the right
place. The success of these social warriors is success of AFI as a whole. As we move towards 2020, I strongly
hope to retain the continued support of everyone involved in AFI’s growth to date, as well as motivate a new
set of passionates to join the ride.
Thank you for your support and partnership.
Sanjay Kadaveru,
Founder & President, Action For India (AFI)
02
AFI’s
Achievements
Of The Past Five Years
AFI Forums
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thousand social entrepreneurs and mentors who have attended, participated and contributed to the
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voking discussions amongst participants, the inspiring talks by successful entrepreneurs and visionaries as
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JURXSVDVDOVRIRURXUFRPPLWWHGDQGODUJHKHDUWHGJURXSRIVSRQVRUVDQGVXSSRUWHUVIRUPDNLQJWKLV
possible.
Silicon Valley Treks
To recognise merit and promise, we introduced the Silicon Valley Trek Challenge in 2014, where we select
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interacting with the best in breed professionals and academics in Silicon Valley in companies such as
Google, Twitter and Facebook and Universities such as Stanford and UCLA.
Rich Partnerships
It’s a long and challenging road we have set upon, and none of this would have been possible without the
support of our partners. Our relationship with NASSCOM, TiE, IIT Delhi, Booth School of the University of
&KLFDJRDQGRWKHUVKDVHQULFKHGRXUMRXUQH\DQGKDVPDGHXVPRUHH΍HFWLYHLQRXUWDVNRIUHDFKLQJRXW
to social entrepreneurs across the country.
Advisory Services
To sustain the impact of the AFI Forum throughout the year, we are glad to announce that AFI has recently
commenced ASAS, the AFI Social Innovation Advisory Service. The ASAS will be available to meet the
mentorship needs of social entrepreneurs throughout the year, so that their challenges can be resolved
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Entrepreneurs and Mentors, and facilitating their productive interactions on a regular basis.
03
The AFI Forum over the Years
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Social entrepreneurship is often a lonely journey, where it is easy to get isolated and weakened by various
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networking. In a country like India, it becomes extremely important for the entrepreneurs working on social
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7KH $)Ζ )RUXP ZDV ODXQFKHG ZLWK WKLV H[DFW LQWHQWLRQ 7KLV DQQXDO ȵDJVKLS HYHQW EULQJV WRJHWKHU G\QDPLFKDQGSLFNHGVRFLDOHQWUHSUHQHXUVWRJHWKHUZLWKȆLQȵXHQFHUVȇFRPSULVLQJRIGRQRUVLQYHVWRUV
technology leaders, business veterans and governmental organizations, with the goal of building coalitions
to solve India’s biggest problems together.
AFI FORUM 2012
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VRFLDOHQWUHSUHQHXUVDQGLQȵXHQFHUVIURPDURXQGΖQGLDDQG86$JDWKHU
ing at IIT Delhi for a day of networking and discussions.
Theme: *URZLQJ 6RFLDO ΖQQRYDWLRQ /HYHUDJLQJ 7HFKQRORJ\ DQG
Government
Eminent Speakers: The Forum was graced by stalwarts from
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mentored the entrepreneurs gathered at the Forum .
Highlights:7KHȴUVWHYHU)RUXPVDZWKHUHOHDVHRI$)ΖȇVUHSRUWRQ
‘Growing Social Innovation’, highlighting the role of technology and
government in scaling social impact, in conjunction with Dasra.
In the last five years, AFI has put its stake in the ground and it is time now to sow the seeds. Every year, as the new
social entrepreneur and change-makers make their way into the AFI circuit, I feel excited at the larger possibilities for
India and the world. We are also fortunate to have with us the right group of industry leaders and mentors with
substantial experience to help, guide and support the next generation to explore new social and business frontiers.
Sam Pitroda , Telecom Inventor, Entrepreneur, Development Thinker,
and Advisor To The Former Prime Minister of India
.
04
AFI FORUM 2013
Following the success of the 2012 Forum, the 2013 Forum was held for 2
days in IIT Delhi, furthering our agenda of promoting social entrepreneurs
throughout the country.
Theme: ‘Scaling Social Innovation in India’
Driving Force: The Forum’s main goal was to create a network of
social entrepreneurs in India, while encouraging sectoral and
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tions.
Eminent Speakers: The 2nd Forum had an unending list of
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of President Barack Obama’s National Advisory Council on Innova
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Global Education and Leadership Foundation & Vice Chairman,
SUN Group)
Highlights: The keynote panel discussion on “Scaling Social
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WKHȴUVWHYHUȆ6RFLDOΖQQRYDWLRQ7KLQN%RRNȇZDVDOVRODXQFKHGWKLV
year.
AFI FORUM 2014
The Forum was back in 2014: bigger, better, and with a renewed gusto to
help social enterprises address some of the greatest challenges faced by
India.
Theme: "Building Hubs of Social Innovation for Mega Impact"
Driving Force: The Forum reinforced AFI’s commitment to lead
the actions towards scaling enterprises to meet India’s mega
challenges, by increasing access to technology and industry
leaders.
Eminent Speakers: Many luminaries joined in for the 2014
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summit by sharing their vision and knowledge.
Highlights: The MentorCloud an innovative online mentoring
platform connecting social innovators in India with mentors in India
and US was launched during the Forum, to great accolades.
05
AFI FORUM 2015
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in Bengaluru. From exciting ‘Speed Dating’ events, to talks by inspiring Hub
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look forward to.
Theme: ‘‘Leveraging Peers, Partners & Technology: Connect.
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Driving Force: ȆȆ+RZGRZHZRUNWRJHWKHUWRH΍HFWODUJHVFDOHV\VWHP
FKDQJH"ȇ The 4th Annual Forum sought to do this by focusing on the
twin levers of technology and government, and how social entre
preneurs can leverage the same to tackle mega social problems.
Eminent Speakers: 7KHWK)RUXPKDGDXQLTXHPL[RILQȵXHQF
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chairman, UIDAI), Desh Deshpande, Sam Pitroda, Peggy Dulany and
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ence for all attendees.
Highlights: Nandan Nilekani inaugurated the Forum, by giving the
inaugural address. The keynote speech, while touching on the
Aadhaar initiative and its opportunities, addressed the importance
of spreading awareness regarding unresolved problems in the
country, and how social enterprises can resolve them through
technological and governmental support.
AFI FORUM 2016
The 5th edition of the Forum was a celebration of one hundred promising
and innovative entrepreneurs with an unquenchable drive to support the
government in its quest to change India.
Theme: Ȋ7KH 6FDOH8S :HHNHQG IRU 6RFLDO (QWHUSULVHV ΖQQRYDWH
for Impact”
Driving Force: This year, the focus was on India and Innovation,
keeping in mind the need to highlight the role of social entrepre
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6WDQGXSΖQGLDȋ
Eminent Speakers: : The attendees heard from some of India’s
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'Ζ33&(21Ζ7Ζ$D\RJ6RQLD6LQJK(GLWRULDO'LUHFWRU1'79
Highlights: 7KHH[FLWLQJȆ6SHHG'DWLQJȇSUHHYHQWWXUQHGRXWWREH
D KXJH VXFFHVV IRU ERWK WKH HQWUHSUHQHXUV DQG WKH LQȵXHQFHUV
6RPHHYHQPDQDJHGWRȴQGDGYLVRUVWRKHOSWKHLUFRPSDQ\HYHQ
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8S ΖQGLD ΖPSDFW %KDUDWȋ ZDV EURDGFDVW RQ 1'79 UHDFKLQJ
thousands people across the country.
06
WELCOME TO THE VITH EDITION - AFI FORUM 2017
Theme: “Technology for Transformation: Embracing the Future
for Mega Impact”
Driving Force: The 6th Annual Forum highlights the importance
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intelligence, or robotics, can be used to scale social entrepreneurs
and equip them to meet the country’s unresolved problems.
A lot of exciting things are in store for the 6th Edition of the AFI
Forum. The who’s who of the Indian entrepreneurial and philan
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Kant, CEO NITI AAYOG, R Chandrashekhar, President NASSCOM, Dr.
Ramesh Raskar, MIT Media Labs, Anshu Gupta, Goonj.
A hundred social
entrepreneurs from various
parts of India, coming
together to explore mutual
interest and collaboration at
the Forum, is the most
exciting part of AFI. Such
synergies often convert into
business opportunities,
which is key to organizational sustenance and
growth.
Kishore Kumar,
Venture Partners, NS Angel
Ventures
Silicon Valley Chapter
Silicon Valley Trek
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driving the future, for they are the brains behind the innovations that is changing the country’s future at the
grassroots. However, we noticed that social entrepreneurs were not always given the credit they deserved
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VLJQLȴFDQWFRQWULEXWLRQWRWKH*'3RIWKHFRXQWU\
.HHSLQJWKLVLQPLQGWKH6LOLFRQ9DOOH\7UHNZDVȴUVWFRQFHSWXDOL]HGDQGRUJDQL]HGLQWRKRQRXU
DSSUHFLDWHDQGDFNQRZOHGJHWKHH΍RUWVSXWLQE\VRFLDOHQWUHSUHQHXUVLQWKHFRXQWU\7KH7UHNLVDXQLTXH
FRPSHWLWLRQDQGWKHȴUVWRILWVNLQG)URPDVHWRIKDQGSLFNHGHQWUHSUHQHXUVZKRDUHLQYLWHGWREHD
SDUWRIWKH$QQXDO)RUXPZLQQHUVDUHFKRVHQWKURXJKDPHWLFXORXVVFUHHQLQJSURFHVVWRDWWHQGDQDOOH[
pense paid trip to Silicon Valley, the hotbed of innovation, a place where they can gain exposure and knowl
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ZLVGRPDQGUHVLOLHQFHRIHQWHUSULVHLQΖQGLD
Over the last three years, AFI has been proud to have catalysed resource and knowledge sharing among the
brightest minds in India, and the visionaries in the Valley.
07
SILICON VALLEY TREK- 2014
7KH LQDXJXUDO 7UHN ZDV D KXJH VXFFHVV ZLWK WKH enterprising winners getting the opportunity to visit
leading companies in Silicon Valley, such as Google,
Twitter, and Cisco; and leading academic institutions
like Stanford University and the University of California,
%HUNHOH\ ZKHUH WKH\ JDLQHG FURVVGRPDLQ H[SRVXUH
and knowledge of the social entrepreneurship
landscape globally.
Sombodhi Ghosh
Pavin Pankajan
Akanksha Hazari
Leo Mavely
Aakar Innovations
m.Paani
$TXD6Dȴ
Axio Biosolutions
Bikrant Tiwary
*URZ7UHHV
Along with social entrepreneurs gaining a lot of exposure and leverage from the Silicon Valley Trek, I see this as a
reciprocal gain for us in the Valley too. It is equally inspiring for us in the Valley to experience how people solving
social problems with access to a different set of resources and skills. We understand that despite being known as the
hotbed of innovation, the Silicon Valley does not have all answers and the AFI fellows bring a lot of value and knowledge
to this side of the world.
Cynthia Lang, Advisory Board Member at Stanford
Institute for Research in Social Science
.
SILICON VALLEY TREK- 2015
7KH7UHNZLQQHUVLQWKH\HDUJDLQHGH[SRVXUHto a new way of thinking about social entrepreneurship.
Some of the places they visited included Apigee, The Bridgespan Group, Omidyar Network, The David &
Lucille Packard Foundation, Stanford Business.
Dr. Arjun Sachidanand
Apurva Bhandari
Prabhat Kumar
Minhaj Chowdhury
SAS Poorna Arogya
MicroX Labs
Wilma Rodrigues
Saahas Waste Management
08
SankalpTaru
Drinkwell
SILICON VALLEY TREK- 2016
The winners of the 2016 trek experienced mentorship
sessions and panels at: Apigee, The William and Flora
Hewlett Foundation, BridgeSpan Group, Unitus Impact,
Iva, Omidyar Network, and Stanford Business School. They
also got to attend NASSCOM’s prestigious innovation
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startups all across India.
Dr Abhay Shendye
Swasti Agro and Bio Products
Damini Mahajan
WeMakeScholars
Shashank Kumar
Green Agrevolution
Saransh Vaswani
Saajha
Ashim Roy
Uber Diagnostics
The most exciting part of AFI lies in its vision and concept to build innovation hubs, the regional centres of
entrepreneurship and excellence. This can indeed trigger cross-pollination of ideas and collaboration among various
promising business models aimed at improving the status-quo at the BoP. The Annual Forum and the Silicon Valley
Challenge, where entrepreneurs and influencers come together, are offshoots of creating a highly value-added program
for India.
Mahesh Kanumury, Managing Director & Founder,
Arivali Partners
Social entrepreneurs are taking it upon themselves to fill the lacuna left by Government inability and inefficiency.
There are fantastic role-models to look up to, across all sectors. AFI seeks to play a pivotal role in being a catalyst
through the journeys of these entrepreneurs. It seeks to situate itself as a valuable hub of the networks it has built
over the years.
.
Hemanth Achaya, Former Chief Operating Officer, Tata
Advanced Materials Ltd
t
AFI is a unique organization in its approach to promote social innovators and entrepreneurs at a national level and
enable collaborations with an eclectic set of influencers. Over the last five years, it has become a distinguished and
aspirational Forum with a pioneering status in the sector. It has played a pivotal role in popularizing blueprint of the
Social Entrepreneurship hubs, as a facilitator. AFI can become an energizer platform where deserving social
entrepreneurs get visibility, recognition and connection to those who propel their onward journeys to make the world a
better place.
Amit Jain, CEO, WISH Foundation
.
09
Silicon Valley Leadership Circle
When the Silicon Valley Chapter was launched, we knew that we needed to create a bridge between India’s bright
est social entrepreneurs, and the movers and shakers in the Valley. For this, we needed a group of people who
were dedicated to the cause of improving the country’s situation, and those who were eager to mentor entrepre
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Leadership Circle comes into the picture.
The Silicon Valley Leadership Circle was conceived of in 2013, with the objective of creating a brains trust that
could provide inspiration and mentorship not just for AFI, but also to the Social Entrepreneurs in its fold. It
consists of an eclectic mix of successful entrepreneurs, academics, philanthropists and investors, with a common
passion – a deep commitment for the development of India through its social entrepreneurs.
The Silicon Valley Leadership Circle is an exclusive, insightful, and dynamic group of entrepreneurs, technologists,
philanthropists, and impact investors who want to make a change in the social enterprise landscape in the coun
WU\$VOHDGHUVZHZLOOIDFLOLWDWHQHZOLQNDJHVEHWZHHQVRFLDOHQWUHSUHQHXUVDQGLQȵXHQFHUVLQΖQGLDZLWKWKHLU
OLNHPLQGHGFRXQWHUSDUWVLQWKH9DOOH\VRDVWRUHDFKRXUJRDORIKHOSLQJVRFLDOLQQRYDWRUVDFKLHYHPD[LPXP
impact for our country.
Some of the luminaries in the Leadership Circle are:
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3URI+D\DJUHHYD5DR3URIHVVRU6WDQIRUG*UDGXDWH6FKRRORI%XVLQHVV)RUPHU&KDLU
6ULQL$NNDUDMX*HQHUDO3DUWQHU6RȴQQRYD9HQWXUHVD6DQG+LOO5RDG9&ȴUP
Raj Atluru, Managing Director, Silver Lake Kraftwerk, a Sand Hill Road VC Firm
Prof. Mark Granovetter, Chair, Dept. of Sociology, Stanford University
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3UDVDG5DP)RXQGHU&(2*RRUX/HDUQLQJD5DP6KULUDPIXQGHGHGXFDWLRQDOWHFKQRORJ\VWDUWXS
Raju Reddy, IT entrepreneur; AFI Board Member; AFI Hub Champion
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V7HFK/HDGHUVKLS)RUXP
AFI provides the opportunity for connection between the social entrepreneurs' ecosystem in India and financial/non-financial assets in Silicon Valley. This is a valuable link and a very critical piece of the puzzle. I hope it serves the
interests of promising social entrepreneurs in India. AFI has worked hard to establish its presence in the Valley. It
exists for a purpose, to deliver resources and connections to emerging social entrepreneurs and accelerate their
journeys to larger impact.
Steve Toben, President, The Flora Family Foundation
.
There is a great need for a platform like Action For India in the journeys of social entrepreneurs, which gives them high
visibility, connects them to influencers in the Valley and acts as a catalyst in their scale-up journey. AFI has been
able to develop a pan-continental community of mentors and investors, which has now becomes a very powerful asset
and offering to the Indian social entrepreneurship ecosystem.
Radhika Shah, Co-President, Stanford Angels & Entrepreneurs
I admire and support the vision of AFI to recognize, support and nurture promising social enterprises in India. I have
been involved in co-creation of the Kakatiya Sandbox and our efforts are very consistent to AFI's. Silicon Valley
connect is a key proposition of AFI, considering that there is a significant Indo-American population which invests time
and resources frequently in India.
Raju Reddy, Founder of Sierra Atlantic
10
Hubs of Social Innovation
At Action For India, we believe that to solve problems in a sustainable manner, every entity in the community
should work collectively and collaboratively towards the solution. ΖWLVFRQILGHQFHEXLOGLQJDQGDFRPPRQYLVLRQ
RIDΖQQRYDWLRQ+XEWKDWLQVSLUHGXVThe Sandbox empowered people to take up their own challenges, and ȴQG
VROXWLRQVIRULWΖWLVWUXO\WKHVRFLDOHQWUHSUHQHXUVKLSPRGHORIWKHIXWXUH
We wholeheartedly believed in the success of the Hub Model and have been acting as a catalyst in the develop
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ty. The goal is to establish 20 Hubs across the country by 2020.
A Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation Hub
consists of Five Pillars:
HUB CHAMPIONS:
A visionary champion who adopts an area, and wishes to give back
to the society, and improve the lives of countless people.
Currently, the champions include luminaries like
Raju
Reddy
Kakatiya Sandbox
1L]DPDEDG7HODQJDQD
Nagaraja
Prakasam
Native Lead Sandbox
0DGXUDL7DPLO1DGX
Dilip Modi
EkSoch Sandbox
9DUDQDVL8WWDU3UDGHVK
KC Mishra
(.XWLU
%KXEDQHVZDU2GLVKD
MINI CHAMPIONS
$PELWLRXV HQWUHSUHQHXUV ZLWK \HDUVȇ H[SHULHQFH WU\LQJ WR
explore new geographies
SPEARHEADS
Successful entrepreneurs who have achieved the dream of scaling
their enterprises, and would be great role models and mentors.
VARANASI
PARTNERS AND MENTORS
A diverse network of corporations, sector experts, government
RɝFLDOVSKLODQWKURSLVWVDQGIXQGHUV
BHUBANESWAR
NIZAMABAD
IMPLEMENTATION AGENCY
An organization like AFI, which helps in the strategizing and catalys
ing actions within the Hub, based on the Hub Champions’ vision!
MADURAI
More supporters from the Valley are joining and supporting AFI's vision. Fostering social entrepreneurship is very
critical in India. There is an unending list of social problems and the country needs more social innovators and
entrepreneurs to change the status-quo. AFI is an important agent which is building the necessary bridges for the
social entrepreneurs in their scaling-up journey.
A G Karunakaran, President and CEO of MulticoreWare Inc
11
A closer look at AFI entrepreneurs
over the years
Education Levels
High - School
Organizational Structure
diploma
graduate
FOR PROFIT
po st graduate
NON - PROFIT
HYBRID
Population catered
by entrepreneurs
sectorial focus of
social entrepreneurs
RURAL POPULatION
urban population
both
livelihood
agriculture
education
Would you recommend
AFI to others ?
healthcare/wash
energy
others
maybe
Women in Founding teams
no
ye s
women founders
How AFI fared in building
partnerships for its social
entrepreneurs
n0 women in management
team s
women in management
team s
First time
entrepreneurs
very great extent
great extent
first time entrepreneurs
good extent
serial entrepreneurs
little extent
very little extent
The data pre sented corre spond s to a sample size
0
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
of 20% of all AFI entrepreneurs over the years.
Hubs In The Spotlight
Kakatiya
Mr. Raju Reddy, founder of Sierra Atlantic, and Mr. Phinandra Sama, founder of redbus.in spearhead the Kakatiya
Sandbox, which currently empowers people from the districts of Nizamabad, Karimnagar and Medak, to create an
H΍HFWLYHHFRV\VWHPRIHQWUHSUHQHXUVKLSWKDWLVEDVHGRQWKHSULQFLSOHVRILQQRYDWLRQDQGVXVWDLQDELOLW\
7KH.DNDWL\D6DQGER[KDVDOUHDG\EURNHQUHFRUGVFKLOGUHQSHUIRUPHGDȵDVKPREWRHQOLJKWHQWKHPDVVHVDERXW
women and child abuse, as a part of the Sandbox’s LEAD initiative, winning the Limca Book of Records for the largest
ȵDVKPRE
Native Lead
7KHKXEOHGE\1DWLYH/HDG)RXQGDWLRQFDWHUVWRWKHQHHGRIWKHSRSXODFH in Madurai, Erode, and Coimbatore districts
in Tamil Nadu, and is led by Hub Champion, Nagaraja Prakasam. Since its inception, they have reached out to over
16,000 students, and mentored 194+ startups. This is done through a comprehensive network of investors and
mentors who enable and nurture the budding entrepreneurs in the area.
EkSoch
7KH(N6RFKVDQGER[KHDGHGE\'LOLS0RGL6SLFH0RELOLW\/WGLVQXUWXULQJWKHHQWUHSUHQHXULDOGUHDPVRISHRSOHDFURVV
seven districts including Varanasi, Ghazipur, Mirzapur, and more, in the state of Uttar Pradesh. By bringing together the
community, and technology, the local challenges of over 1 million people are being addressed, especially through
projects like LEAD, Agastya, and Navodyami.
EKutir
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:KLOHH.XWLULVSDUWRI$FWLRQ)RUΖQGLDȇV$)Ζ9LVLRQSURMHFWLWLVGL΍HUHQWEHFDXVHDOOLWVLQLWLDWLYHVDUHIRUSURȴWΖW
ZRUNV LQ WKUHH DUHDV DJULFXOWXUH .ULVKL 9LNDV VDQLWDWLRQ 6YDGKD DQG VRFLDO ȴQDQFH 2QH $FUH 9HQWXUH ΖW DOVR
RSHUDWHVDHFRPPHUFHYHQWXUHFDOOHG9HJJLH.DUW%URDGO\H.XWLUDFWVDVDQLQFXEDWRUWKDWYDOLGDWHVLGHDVWHVWVWKHP
LQWKHȴHOGLWHUDWHVLIQHFHVVDU\DQGDIWHUYDOLGDWLRQSDFNDJHVDQGUHOHDVHVthem into BoP markets.
SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP advisory service
India is a melting pot of inspiring social entrepreneurs,
engineers, and innovators, all of whom are steadfast in their
goal of making the country better. Currently, a great deal has
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close down.
AFI has gained a lot of insight through the Forums, Silicon
Valley Treks, and our involvement in the various Hubs. Years
of providing mentorship and assistance to social innovators
has made us realize the importance of continuous engage
ment with social entrepreneurs throughout the year.
$)ΖLVSURXGWRSUHVHQWWKH$)Ζ6($GYLVRU\6HUYLFH$6$6D
free intervention tool that assists social entrepreneurs in
scaling their business, by providing them with mentorship
DQG JXLGDQFH RQGHPDQG %\ EXLOGLQJ D FRPSUHKHQVLYH
ecosystem that includes a Mentorship Network, fortnightly
webinars, access to the AFI Forum, and an active portal to
promote dialogue between entrepreneurs and mentors, the
ASAS seeks to create an India where social enterprises can
scale through community support, to meet the community’s
challenges!
The ASAS operates on many levels:
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DOOWKHHQWUHSUHQHXUV
13
On Enterprising
Journeys
Rikin Gandhi,
Digital Greens
Annual Turnover: $ 10 million
Team Size:
100 people across India, Africa and
the USA
Impact:
1.4 million farmers impacted
It started with a research project which Rikin was working on, as part of Microsoft Research Labs. While
H[SORULQJWHFKQRORJ\ȇVSRWHQWLDOUROHLQVPDOOVFDOHDJULFXOWXUHYDULRXVPRGHVRILQIRUPDWLRQGLVVHPLQD
WLRQVXFKDV79YLGHRUDGLRHWFZHUHHYDOXDWHGDQGFRQWUROWULDOVSURYHGWKDWHɝFDF\RIYLGHREDVHGWULDOV
were 10X more than other existing methods. There was no looking back for Rikin since then. He now
HQYLVLRQVWRH[SDQGKLVZRUNDFURVVJHRJUDSKLHVDQGJRDOVIURPERRVWLQJIDUPSURGXFWLYLW\WRDGGLQJ
nutritional value to farmers and provisioning shared services.
$VRQHRIWKHZLQQLQJHQWUHSUHQHXUVIURPWKHȴUVWFRKRUWRI$)Ζ5LNLQIRXQGHQJDJHPHQWVDQGV\QHUJLHV
with fellow Agripreneurs at the Forum and beyond very meaningful.
Rikin is focused on impact and works backward, while adopting the attitude of a learner. To his fellow social
entrepreneurs, he says, “Sometimes the most impactful solutions come from the most unlikely places. The
new entrants might have unique and workable ideas to solve problems.”
Annual Turnover: $ 2 Million
Shashank Kumar
Green Agrevolution
Team Size:
32, in Patna and Gurgaon, along
ZLWKQRGDORɝFHV
Impact:
15,000 farmers reached out
WKURXJKPLFURHQWHUSULVHV
Hailing from a farming community, Shashank was well aware of the day to day problems faced by farmers.
He knew there were innovative solutions, and started Green Agrevolution as a way of spreading these
solutions among the Indian farming community. Because of his work, he became an Ashoka Fellow in
DQGZDVQDPHG7LPHV1RZ$PD]LQJΖQGLDQΖQWKHQH[W\HDUVKHZLVKHVWRUHDFKRXWWR
PRUHWKDQDPLOOLRQIDUPHUVWKURXJKKLVȆ'HKDDW0RGHOȇRIFROODERUDWLQJZLWKPLFURHQWHUSULVHV
Shashank was a winner of the Silicon Valley Trek, and for him, the network, mentorship, lead generation,
DQGIXQGLQJRSSRUWXQLWLHVKHJDLQHGIURPKLVIHOORZHQWUHSUHQHXUVDQGPHQWRUVZDVWKHELJJHVWEHQHȴW
$VDPRWLYDWLRQWRWKRVHHQWHULQJWKHȴHOGQRZKHVD\VȊΖQWKHSDVW\HDUVΖȇYHVHHQKRZWKHLQGXVWU\KDV
EHHQ WUDQVIRUPHG 7KH ȴHOG LV IXOO RI RSSRUWXQLWLHV DV ORQJ DV \RX KDYH LQQRYDWLYH R΍HULQJV IRU WKH
community, and are proactive about grabbing these opportunities”.
Annual Turnover: N/A
Prabhat Kumar
MicroX Labs
Team Size:
LQ%DQJDORUHRɝFH
Impact:
N/A
Prabhat’s motivation to start MicroX labs came from his childhood in Bihar, where he saw the struggles
faced by those who didn’t have access to good medical infrastructure. After losing his parents, he decided
WRJHWLQWRWKHȴHOGRIPHGLFDOWHFKQRORJ\+LVHQWHUSULVH0LFUR;/DEVGHYHORSVSRLQWRIFDUHGLDJQRVWLFV
and technology that can be made accessible to more people at a lower cost.
+LVDVVRFLDWLRQZLWK$)ΖDQGYLVLWLQJ6LOLFRQ9DOOH\DVD7UHNZLQQHUKHOSHGKLPȴQGDQXPEHURIRWKHU
social enterprises that he could partner with. So far, MicroX has won a number of awards, including Tata
6RFLDO (QWHUSULVH &KDOOHQJH *RRJOH -DJULWL <DWUD ΖQGLD$IULFD %XVLQHVV 9HQWXUH $ZDUG /RFNKHHG 0DUWLQ
Innovation Award, etc.
To aspiring entrepreneurs, he says “It is a tough journey, but you can succeed, as long as you have the
patience and the passion”.
14
Ketan Deshpande,
FUEL
Annual Turnover: INR 20 crores
Team Size:
SHRSOHDFURVVRɝFHV
Impact:
10 lakh students across 11 states
Ketan’s journey into the world of social entrepreneurship was driven by his personal experience as a
student. He decided to start FUEL, to bridge the gap between students and the jobs that best suited their
needs. Ketan is inspired by former president APJ Abdul Kalam, and wishes to expand FUEL’s work to reach
20 states, and over 2 crore students in the future!
Ketan has received the Ashoka Fellowship in 2013, and the University of Cambridge Dr. DC Pavate Memori
al Visiting Fellowship in 2016.
For him, the biggest highlight of the AFI Forum was meeting Mr. Shiv Khemka, through whose assistance
and mentorship FUEL reached out to almost 500 schools across the country, especially in rural areas!
7RWKRVHHQWUHSUHQHXUVZKRDUHVWDUWLQJR΍LQWKHȴHOG.HWDQVD\VȊ&RQVLVWHQF\LVZKDW\RXVKRXOGIRFXV
RQQRWWKHPRQH\-XVWWU\WRVROYHZKDWSUREOHPV\RXKDYHDQGWKHIXQGLQJZLOOFRPHRQLWȇVRZQȋ
Sombodhi Ghosh
Aakar Innovations
Annual Turnover: INR 3 crores
Team Size: SHRSOHDFURVVRɝFHV
Impact:
16,000 women across the country
Sambodhi ventured into the world of social entrepreneurship quite naturally. Having volunteered with
countless NGOs in his growing years, the attitude of change was already in his blood. He got the idea to
start Aakar after personally observing the way women in rural India were treated when they were menstru
DWLQJ+HORRNHGDWWKLQJVRQWKHJUDVVURRWOHYHODQGGHFLGHGWRWDNHDQDFWLRQEDVHGDSSURDFKWKDWFDQ
GHȴQLWHO\FUHDWHDODUJHVFDOHLPSDFW
One of Sombodhi’s fondest memories of AFI is visiting Silicon Valley, as one of the winners of the Silicon
Valley Trek competition, in 2014. He started thinking about social entrepreneurship in a whole new light,
and the experience became one that had a huge impact on him personally.
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UHDFWLYHWRVLWXDWLRQVDQGEHPRUHREMHFWLYHZKLOHDSSURDFKLQJSUREOHPV0RUHRYHUEHKDSS\ZLWKZKDW
you achieve’.
Annual Turnover: %HWZHHQFURUH
Raghu Kanchustambam
Concept Waves
Team Size:
1SHRSOHLQWKH+\GHUDEDG
2ɝFH
Impact:
FXVWRPHUV
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empower our masses and push us out of poverty. His organization, Concept Waves, caters to the educa
tional management needs of over 100,000 students across the country, towards the same goal! Concept
:DYHVKDVZRQDQXPEHURIDFFRODGHVLQFOXGLQJ1$66&206RFLDOΖQQRYDWLRQ+RQRXUVDQG9RGD
IRQH0RELOHVIRU*RRG3URJUDPPH
Being a part of the AFI family gave Raghu a renewed faith in his vocation. Action For India is a platform that
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connections.
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ZRUNRQDQGGRQȇWJHWGLVWUDFWHGIURP\RXUJRDOȋ
The way AFI is trying to enable cross border fertilization of powerful ideas of social change, is very unique. While REDX
is enabling entrepreneurs to explore and examine the right problems to work on, AFI is providing them with the a fertile
field to strengthen their roots and grow. I see great synergies.
.
Ramesh Raskar, Head, MIT Media Lab’s Camera Culture
Research Group
.
15
Damini Mahajan
WeMakeScholars
Annual Turnover: INR 25 Lakhs
Team Size:
10 people
Impact:
22 Lakhs users
'DPLQLUHDOL]HGWKDWIXQGLQJZDVRQHRIWKHELJJHVWSUREOHPVIRUSHRSOHZKRZDQWHGWRVWXG\DEURDGD
SDJH VKH VWDUWHG RQ )DFHERRN DERXW GL΍HUHQW VFKRODUVKLSV JRW ODF IROORZHUV LQ QR WLPH DQG VKH
realized the scope of the problem. This is how WeMakeScholars, a comprehensive platform that provides
extensive information about scholarships available across the world, was founded.
Damini’s time at the Action For India Forum, and her visit to Silicon Valley, as a Trek Winner allowed her to
have closer interactions with fellow winners, who motivated her professionally. Through the network she
made in Silicon Valley, she even found potential clients!
In the future, Damini wishes to extend student’s access to scholarships, by reaching out to more students
DQGVFKRODUVKLSSURYLGHUVDFURVVGL΍HUHQWFRXQWULHVȆ6RFLDOHQWUHSUHQHXUVKDYHDXQLTXHVHWRIFKDOOHQJ
HVEXWRQHKDVWROHDUQKRZWREDODQFHWKHVFDOHVEHWZHHQVRFLDOFKDQJHDQGEXVLQHVV7KDWȇVWKHPRVW
important step towards running a successful social enterprise’, she opines.
Annual Turnover: INR 4.5 crore
Wilma Rodriguez
Saahas
Team Size:
2RɝFHVWD΍DQGȴHOGVWD΍
spread across Bangalore.
Impact: KRXVHKROGV
%DQJDORUHȇVODFNRIHɝFLHQWZDVWHPDQDJHPHQWZDVZKDWVHUYHGDV:LOPDȇVPRWLYDWLRQZKHQVKHVWDUWHG
Saahas. It is now a movement to keep Bangalore’s beauty intact, and a movement to change people’s
mindsets about social entrepreneurship, while developing a solid waste management model that is
environmentally friendly, and scalable.
Wilma was one of the AFI 100 Entrepreneurs, and a winner of the Silicon Valley Trek. For her, Action For
India is a platform that helps dispel popular misconceptions about social entrepreneurs, and mainstream
the challenges faced by the same, as they understand the balance between social change and business.
As for the future, Wilma believes that Saahas will be a vehicle that promotes community participation in
waste management process, by involving each and every household in the process.
7RHQWUHSUHQHXUVZKRVKDUHKHUGULYHWRFKDQJHWKHZRUOGVKHVD\VȊ7KHSUREOHPVWKDWZHVRFLDOHQWUH
preneurs) are tackling can be overwhelming at times. You just need to be consistent and persistent in your
belief and action to succeed”.
Annual Turnover: Approx. 3 crores
Prukalpa Sankar
SocialCops
Team Size:
40 people, based out of Delhi
Impact:
10 billion data points currently
available on the website.
Prukalpa Sankar founded SocialCops along with Varun Banka as a way of enabling citizens and decision
makers to have access to the data they need to make the correct choices. Their database can be used by
citizens to gain access to information about health, sanitation, emergency relief, etc. Fortune India recog
QL]HG6RFLDO&RSVȇFRQWULEXWLRQLQKDQGOLQJUHOLHIZRUNDIWHUWKH&KHQQDLȵRRGVDVDSDUWRIWKHLUȇ8QGHU
40’ initiative!
Prukalpa thinks that the Action For India Forum is a great initiative that can help entrepreneurs realize the
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SocialCops’ work can be scaled not only nationally, but globally as well.
7RDOOWKHHQWUHSUHQHXUVEUHDNLQJLQWRWKHȴHOG3UXNDOSDVD\VȊ3HRSOHZLOODOZD\VWHOO\RXWKDW\RXFDQȇWGR
it, or that you will fail. Don’t listen to them, and just follow what you’re passionate about”.
AFI, just like a social enterprise, is on an evolutionary journey. Enabling exchange of ideas among social enterprises ,
exposing them to various enabling networks and interesting opportunities and integrating the Silicon Valley connection
are some of the ways in which AFI has carved its niche.
Ranjani Saigal, Executive Director, Ekal Vidyalaya
16
Abhay Shendye
Swasti Agro and Bio products
Annual Turnover: Ζ15FURUHV
Team Size:
SHRSOHLQWKH3XQHRɝFH
Impact:
37,000 people
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solutions every time he went to his grandparents’ farm as a child. He wanted to make a huge impact
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He attended the Action for India Forum in 2016, to promote Swasthi, and to network with others who he
partner with. In the future, he wishes to make Swasti an international company, reaching out to a greater
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$FFRUGLQJWR$EKD\KHLVDQHQWUHSUHQHXUZKRKDVFKRVHQWRHQWHUDȴHOGWKDWKDVJUHDWHUVRFLDOLPSDFW
To those aspiring to follow his footsteps, he says “The initial struggles might be high, but so will the
rewards. You just have to focus on improving the quality of your products and services”.
Annual Turnover: INR 50 lakhs
Ashutosh Burnwal
Buddy4Study
Team Size;
23 people, based out of Noida.
Impact:
8500 students received scholarships worth
FURUHVWKURXJKWKHSRUWDO
$VKXWRVK%XUQZDOKDLOVIURPDIDPLO\RIIRXUVLEOLQJVDQGIHHOVWKDWIDPLOLHVLQΖQGLDVDFULȴFHTXLWHDELWWR
HGXFDWHWKHLUFKLOGDSOLJKWWKDWFDQEHDYRLGHGWKURXJKDGDWDEDVHRIVFKRODUVKLSVWKDWWKH\FDQDFFHVV
which is what his enterprise, Buddy4Study does. Buddy4Study, as a scholarship platform, has won a
QXPEHURIDZDUGVLQFOXGLQJWKH0DQWKDQ$ZDUGIRU6RXWK$VLDDQG$VLD3DFLȴF5HJLRQLQDQGWKH
NASSCOM Emerge 50 in 2015.
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Nilekani. He was also able to make connections with other enterprises that he still works closely with.
In the next ten years, Ashutosh hopes to reach out to 10 crore students, and increase the supply of scholar
ships by reaching out to companies. His biggest advice to new entrepreneurs is to make use of platforms
like AFI. “Social entrepreneurs are always wondering whether they are doing the right thing or not. Places
OLNH$)ΖKHOSV\RXȴQGDVXSSRUWLYHQHWZRUNRIIHOORZHQWUHSUHQHXUVDQGPHQWRUVWKDW\RXFDQDSSURDFK
in the future”.
Bikrant Tiwari
GrowTrees
Annual Turnover: Ζ15FURUHV
Team:
8 people
Impact:
1.8 million trees planted, creating 1.5 lakh
days of employment
After working with a MNC for 12 years, Bikrant realized that he wanted to bring his years of experience into
WKHȴHOGRIHQYLURQPHQWDOLVPIRUWKHJUHDWHUJRRG
When Bikrant joined GrowTrees as its CEO, they had planted a few thousand trees. Now, the number
stands at 1.8 million all across the country, providing fresh air and employment opportunities to marginal
ized tribal women around India.
$WWHQGLQJWKH$FWLRQ)RUΖQGLD)RUXPPDGHKLPUHDOL]HWKDWDORWRIRWKHUSHRSOHZHUHDOVRȴJKWLQJWKLV
uphill battle. Going to Silicon Valley, as a Trek winner, gave him exposure to a brand new way of thinking
about entrepreneurship, failure, and challenges!
ΖQWKHIXWXUH%LNUDQWZDQWVWRPDNHUHIRUHVWDWLRQDFRPPXQLW\H΍RUWDQGVFDOH*URZ7UHHVWRDJOREDO
level, as their cost per tree is the lowest in the world!
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success. Always ignore the naysayers, for there will always be people who will motivate you.”
17
Board of Trustees
Board of Directors
Amit Jain
Interim Chairman, Action For
India
CEO, WISH Foundation
Ravi Mantha
Author, Corporate Board
Adviser,
Strategy Expert, Impact Investor
Sanjay Kadaveru
Founder & President, Action For
India.
Neerja Raman
Visiting Scholar,
Stanford University
Rentala Chandrashekhar
President of NASSCOM
Tralance O Addy Ph.D.
International Business and
Technology leaders, Standford
Nagaraja Prakasam
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Rajeev Gowda
Member of Parliament,
Government of India
Neelam Chhiber
Managing Director, Mother
Earth
Shiv Khemka
Vice Chairman, SUN Group
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Global Education & Leadership
Foundation
Kishore Kumar
Founder & CEO, Nuviso
Networks
and Infore Inc
Sam Pitroda
Honorary Chairman
Dr. P. Vijay Bhatkar
Chairman, Board of Governors
of IIT Delhi,
Architect of India’s national
initiative
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Dilip Modi
Vice Chairman, Spice Mobility
Past President ASSOCHAM
18
Cynthia Lang
Philanthropist, Strategist & Dot
Connector
Prasad Inampudi
CIO, Kuber Capital Management
Raju Reddy
Founder, Sierra Atlantic
Ranjani Saigal
Executive Director, Ekal
Vidyalaya
Anand Shah
BMW Impact Ventures,
Social Entrepreneur, TED Fellow
Sandeep Raju
Vice President Wipro
Silicon Valley
Leadership Circle
Advisory Board
Steve Toben &KDLU
President, Flora Family
Foundation
Anu Acharya
CEO and Founder, Mapmygen
ome
Sushmita Ghosh
President Emeritus, Ashoka
Foundation
Prof. Hayagreeva Rao
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Stanford Graduate School of
Business
Srini Akkaraju
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venture
Mahesh Kanumury
Managing Director, Aravali
Partners
M. S. Ananth
Former Director, IIT Madras
Dr. Ashwin Naik
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Raj Atluru
Managing Director,
Silver Lake Kraftwerk
Ashish Dhawan
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Director,
Chrys Capital; Founder & CEO,
Central Square Foundation
Prof. V. Kasturi Rangan
Harvard Business School
Prof. Mark Granovetter
Chair, Dept of Sociology,
Stanford
Dr. James J. Gillespie
CEO, Center for Healthcare
Innovation
Pamela Pavkov
Vice President at Jasper Ridge
Partners
Prof. Shikhar Ghosh
Mel Tukman Faculty Fellow
Sr. Lecturer, Entrepreneurial
Management Unit
Sanjay Kadaveru
Founder & President, Action For
India
Prasad Ram
Founder & CEO, Gooru Learning
Raju Reddy
Founder, Sierra Atlantic
Radhika Shah
Tech Entrepreneur,
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Women’s Tech Leadership
Forum
Colburn S. Wilbur
Honorary Trustee,Packard
Foundation
Nish Acharya
CEO, Citizenee
Technology Advisory
Council
Phanindra Sama
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Prem Jain
Ex GM, Cisco
Anant Jhingran
VP Products, Apigee
Prof. Ashish Goel
Stanford University
Principal Scientist,Teapot
19
OUR SPONSORS
Over The Years.
Institutional Donors
Individual Donors
Raj Lingam
IndraSoft
Avik Pal
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Joy Thomas
Google
Anant Jhingran
VP Products, Google
Ravi Mantha
Author, Corporate Board
Adviser,
Strategy Expert, Impact Investor
Kishore Kumar
Founder & CEO, Nuviso
Networks
and Infore Inc
20
Cynthia Lang
Philanthropist, Strategist & Dot
Connector
Chittaranjan Mallipeddi
Investor and Advisor
Several
Sandeep Raju
Vice President Wipro
Subhash Choudhary
CEO at Aankhen Inc
Ben Gomes
Google
G.Venkat
CEO, bitWise Academy
Raj Atluru
Managing Director of Silver
Lake Kraftwerk
Chaitanya Tumuluri
Broadcom LTD
Anil Kapatkar
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Deepak Ganju
Managing Director, Merrill
Lynch Global Wealth Manage
ment
Ram Jayam
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Ajay Malkowthekar
Director
SKILD Solutions
OUR PARTNERS IN CHANGE.
Over The Years.
21
Team Action For India
Sanjay Kadaveru
Bhaskar Chatterjee
Hemanth Achaya
Founder & President
Senior Advisor
Senior Advisor
Sanjay has over 18 years of international
experience spanning the domains of invest
ments, management consulting and
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er and Board Member at the Center for
Healthcare Innovation, a US based
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tion focusing on the life sciences. Sanjay is a
Charter Member of TiE and served as a
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innovation focused conferences in the US.
Sanjay founded the AP Technology Leader
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business consulting services to civic and
governmental causes in Andhra Pradesh.
Dr. Bhaskar Chatterjee is widely acclaimed
as the Father of CSR in our country. He was
instrumental in framing and issuing the
CSR guidelines for PSUs and played a major
role in the inclusion of Section 135 in the
Companies Act of 2013. As DG & CEO of
IICA, he spearheads the National Founda
tion for Corporate Social Responsibility
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tive Service in 1975 and has held many
distinguished positions. Dr. Chatterjee is
also a widely acclaimed management
practitioner, theorist and teacher. He has
written and lectured over many years on
issues of social and sustainable develop
ment, corporate responsibility and human
resources.
Hemanth has 30 years of experience in
Industry, primarily with startups . Begin
ning his career with Philips India, he
became a member of Tata Administrative
Service in 1983. At Tata Tea Limited, he
was part of the team that turned around
the loss making packet tea division. He
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employee and also served as the the Chief
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als Limited for ten years. He is currently
working as a business consultant with
startups and also teaches foreign
students at Christ University.
Anil Aggarwal
Hiranmay Mahanta
Uday Lakkar
Advisor
Advisor
Advisor
Anil is founder of Vriksh Advisors, a
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He has over 30 years of work experience.
In his last job, Anil was Director Finance for
Ireo, a foreign PE and a real estate
developer. Prior to that, he worked as CFO
at Punj Lloyd; CFO for Bunge Agribusiness
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Group; Country Treasurer and Head
Capital Markets for Cargill India and AVP,
Reliance Capital. Anil graduated as a
science student and later pursued CA,
MBA and CFA.
Hiranmay acts as honorary director of GTU
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Support System. He is also a Member,
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policy implementation committee; he is
making national strategy to take the
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AICTE.
Uday Lakkar is the founder of Zocalo.in,
an online marketplace in the real estate
space in India. His background has been
primarily in the private equity investing
and consulting space in India. He has
more than 7 years of diverse functional
and industry experience across organiza
tions like Morgan Stanley, McKinsey,
Network18 Group and IREO Real Estate
Private Equity. Uday earned his manage
ment education from IIM Ahmedabad.
Ramkumar
Monika Shukla
Varun Kashyap
Project Manager
Co-Founder, LetsEndorse
Co-Founder, LetsEndorse
Ram was one of the 10 graduates
sponsored by University of Leicester for
Tier 1 skilled candidate visa and was also
an Enterprise Inc Fellow. Previously he
was the Consultant & Program leader of
“Champions for Change”, a program
designed to develop leadership skills
among students As a student of MBA at
University of Leicester, he initiated the
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program.
22
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the key stakeholders of the development
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ing, collaboration and resource mobiliza
tion transparently. She graduated as a
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worked as a technologist at Goldman
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in Liberal Arts from the Young India
Fellowship Program and was one of the
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handpicked from India, where her
research dealt with Corporate Sustainabil
ity and CSR.
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ment ecosystem to solve problems collec
tively. An alumnus of PEC, Chandigarh, he
founded Suvidha Bazaar in 2010, a
doorstep delivery service of fresh fruits
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from Delhi Hub. He also pursued the
Young India Fellowship and was among
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India selected in 2014.
ROAD AHEAD
The future looks bright, promising and exciting. The Social Entrepreneurship landscape in India has
strong tailwinds that can help it soar to lofty heights – positive government interventions, rapid growth,
a vigorous entrepreneurial culture and global interest and recognition of India’s potential.
AFI intends to harness these powerful and positive forces to position itself as a social development hub
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AFI intends to build – the Forum, the Silicon Valley Trek, the Social Innovation Hubs, and the AFI Advisory
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with proper nurturing and care, will soon grow into respected and useful institutions.
We have a plan to take the Forum further and wider in the form of smaller programs in remote parts of
the country. We also have a plan to make the Forum a deeper and more immersive experience by
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by creating a virtual marketplace – a portal where entrepreneurs and innovators can share plans
and ideas with the best mentors from around the world on a 24/7 basis. A place where boundar
ies will vanish and the pains and entry barriers that now exist in connecting with the right set
of people will vanish. This, with the other enablers – the Social Enterprise and Innovation
Hubs, the AFI Social Enterprise Advisory service – will indeed get us closer to our dream
of ensuring that every noble enterprise that is serving the Bottom of the Pyramid will
get their share of optimal support.
We recognise the journey can be fraught with pitfalls – but are buoyed by the
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volunteers who share our dream.
Reach out to us!
If you are interested in supporting us, either as
a Mentor, Partner, or Donor contact us:
[email protected]
www.actionfoindia.org
INDIA
/ActionForIndia
/ActionForIndia
Action For India
S-6, Second Floor
SDA Shopping Complex
Mayur Vihar Phase - 1
New Delhi -110091
USA
Action For India
1104 Riverside Drive
Los Altos, CA 94024
AFI is an approved federally tax-exempt organisation
described in IRS Code Section 501(c) (iii).
Tax Identification No 45-5598949
Authored by: Monika Shukla, Varun Kashyap, Hemanth Achaya, Khyati Shah, Samrudhi Sridharan